Gas prices should return to normal now that a pipeline is working again, officials said Sunday.
Line 1 of the Colonial Pipeline, which feeds the majority of the gas supply for metro Atlanta, was back in service by 10 a.m. after an accident Monday left a person dead and several others hurt in Helena, Alabama.
The company said a trackhoe operated by a veteran and highly trained contract crew from eastern Alabama struck the pipeline, causing a massive explosion.
All product was removed from the affected segment of pipe Friday evening, the company said in a statement released Saturday.
“Excavation operations commenced shortly thereafter and continue this morning. Once excavation is complete, the affected segment of pipe will be removed and a new segment will be tested and installed. Based upon the latest information, we continue to project a Sunday afternoon restart of Line 1,” the company said.
While no outages were reported in metro Atlanta, gas prices have climbed, with some drivers reporting individual stations bumping prices up as much as 20 cents a gallon. However, the average price of regular gas in metro Atlanta Sunday morning was $2.31 a gallon, up 11 cents since Monday, according to Gas Buddy.
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